


baby, keep your eyes on me

by sunfires



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Figure Skater Johnny, Fluff, Hockey Player Haechan, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2020-12-21
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:15:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28219827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunfires/pseuds/sunfires
Summary: He only notices Ten beside him when the older speaks up. “Do you think he puts out easily?” Ten asks in that sly tone of his and the roll of Donghyuck’s eyes comes almost automatically. He realizes he’s been holding the same lunge position for a few minutes and his groin is starting to ache, so he changes into the pigeon stretch.Despite the dumb question that’s probably more rhetorical than anything, Donghyuck considers it for a moment as his eyes follow the muscles straining under Johnny’s tights, pushing his own hips deeper into the stretch.“Nah. He looks high maintenance.”
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Suh Youngho | Johnny
Comments: 32
Kudos: 150





	baby, keep your eyes on me

Donghyuck can’t help himself but watch. His eyes follow the lines of the figure skater’s thigh muscles, the curve of his ass, the bit of exposed skin that appears in a flash every time he jumps up in a spin. He’s not new to this–more often than not Johnny’s time slot for hall C falls right after their team’s morning practice and the corner they use for stretching allows for a perfect view of the rink. He’d be stupid to miss out on a view like that, so he doesn’t. By now he’s learned to tell that if Johnny’s brows are furrowed after a complicated turn, he didn’t execute it perfectly and if his eyes stay closed while he’s nodding his head at his coach, he’s not listening. Sometimes he smiles all throughout practice, even when some of his jumps land him on his (beautiful) butt. But whatever he does or whatever mood he’s in, the grace and smoothness of his movements on ice remain captivating. Now, Donghyuck himself is no stranger to ice, he has basically lived on skates since he was a kid–sometimes it feels easier than walking–so he feels confident in saying Johnny’s something else entirely. Even on ground, having shucked off his stiff shoulder pads and helmet, he feels like his slouching body can only do so much while Johnny towers above others with confidence.

Donghyuck does his best to not be creepy about the blatant staring but it’s hard to force himself to look away. Besides, he’s not the only one ogling out of his team. 

He only notices Ten beside him when the older speaks up. “Do you think he puts out easily?” Ten asks in that sly tone of his and the roll of Donghyuck’s eyes comes almost automatically. He realizes he’s been holding the same lunge position for a few minutes and his groin is starting to ache, so he changes into the pigeon stretch. 

Despite the dumb question that’s probably more rhetorical than anything, Donghyuck considers it for a moment as his eyes follow the muscles straining under Johnny’s tights, pushing his own hips deeper into the stretch. 

“Nah. He looks high maintenance.” 

As if he’s heard them, Johnny's gaze lands on the pair right as Donghyuck is finishing his sentence. He immediately feels weird being caught or maybe feels weird that Ten’s sharing the moment with him, as much as a bunch of sweaty dudes stretching in a corner and ogling a pretty figure skater can even be considered a moment. Ten’s laugh echoes around him as Donghyuck raises his hand in a weak wave, doing his best to school his helpless expression into something even vaguely attractive. Johnny winks at them and goes for another lap, the moment dissipating as if it never happened. 

“Doesn’t look too unavailable to me,” Ten cackles and Donghyuck wants to shove him over. Instead, he switches his legs underneath him and lets the painful stretch distract him. “Maybe he _wants_ us to approach him.” 

To that Hyuck can’t help but snort. “So he could shoot you down?”

And with an offended yell, Ten’s on him, pushing him over and they’re rolling around, conversation momentarily forgotten in favour of not letting their pride suffer.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* 

On his bed, Donghyuck scrolls through his phone while the news runs in the background. He turns it on every day, despite never paying any attention to the robotic voices of newscasters. On his phone screen, there are a few articles about the team and their performance. People always say not to read comments but Donghyuck can’t help it–the ego boost is too addicting, even if he has to read through all the couch experts and the negative shit people say about him. Fuck all of them them though, Donghyuck knows he’s good. After all, he’s one of the youngest and most promising players in the league for a reason.

One article catches his eyes. _Olympic Figure Skater Johnny Suh - new supporter of Killer Whales?_ It’s some trashy gossip blog with tacky ads and terrible writing but Donghyuck’s too curious to care. It has pictures of Johnny at not just one but a few of their games, which Hyuck dutifully examines with the excuse of trying to decipher which arenas they’re taken in. He looks good, no surprises there, but it’s rare to see somebody fucking glow in the poorly taken pictures of hockey match visitors. They’ve even attached a clip of Johnny saying he’s not really interested in hockey from an interview he’s done a couple of years ago, which the reporter uses to trail on about the possible causes of this change of heart. 

Donghyuck scrolls down to the comments. There are a couple that confirm having seen him at some of the matches, adding how good looking and tall he is in person. Hard agree. A few commend him for supporting his city’s team and hoping to see the same energy in the world championships. A few wonder if any of the players have to do anything with it. 

Donghyuck chuckles and forwards the link to Ten. _Maybe ur luck is abt to change _.__

__✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*_ _

_  
_Donghyuck hasn't seen Johnny for a week. He has flown out of the country to participate in some international competition, making Donghyuck's post-stretching sessions incredibly boring and therefore shortening their time in half. Donghyuck hasn't seen Johnny for a week and though he knows the other is supposed to be back to the rink soon, he doesn't expect to run into him in a hallway. Or rather–he doesn't expect Johnny to almost break Ten's nose while the two of them were too busy cracking on about something Yangyang pulled during practice._   
_

__Thankfully (or as Donghyuck sees it–unfortunately), the door Johnny swung open stopped about an inch away from Ten's nose, though his shriek was probably heard all the way in the parking lot. In any other scenario Donghyuck would laugh his ass off, finger-pointing and holding-onto-the-wall included. It's different when he's with Ten AND Johnny. All he does is crack an amused smile, curious about the interaction that will follow._ _

__“Oh sorry,” Johnny says and takes out one airpod from his ear that's studded with piercings. “You okay?”_ _

__Donghyuck tears his gaze away from Johnny to see Ten's reaction and he's so glad he's here, witnessing this, because it's top tier teasing material that Hyuck's sure he'll be able to use for years to come. Eyes wide and so fucking smitten, he just stares, lips parted in a fruitless attempt to say something. Even the corner of Johnny's mouth twitches seeing the blatant adoration in Ten's eyes and Donghyuck has to cough because it all gets too much._ _

__“I might have to take him to the nurse to get checked for cardiogenic shock,” he butts in, brows furrowed because he's never seen Ten be quiet for so long and maybe he does need some help. Probably psychological more than anything._ _

__“I'm fine,” Ten suddenly speaks a bit loudly, Donghyuck's voice bringing him back to reality._ _

__“Good!” Johnny exclaims and looks genuinely relieved. The fool. “Wouldn't want to cause an injury right before a big game.”_ _

__And because Donghyuck doesn't want Johnny to feel like he did anything wrong, he chimes in again, all while pulling his lips into the sweetest smile. “Don’t worry about it, you’d be doing the lot of us a favor with shutting him up.”_ _

__At that, Johnny laughs and Donghyuck doesn’t even notice the shove Ten gives him because he’s too focused on the way Johnny’s face scrunches up in joy and how his warm laughter echoes around him. He forces a distracted giggle to save at least some face and not look as foolish as Ten did a second ago._ _

__Then Johnny's eyes flick to the end of the hallway. “I gotta go but– uh,” he raises his fist in the air, a loopy grin on his face. “Go whales!”_ _

__And he's off.__

__✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*_ _

_  
_A few hours later, Johnny's opening the door to his apartment, shoulders slumping from both the weight of his bags and the exhaustion of the day. He steps back into cozy familiarity and feels happiness spread around his body–nothing beats coming home after almost a week spent in small planes and bleak hotel rooms. Tonight he sees light pouring out from the kitchen with the smell of a delicious meal breezing in from the kitchen and young Britney blasting through the speakers; Johnny can't wait to throw himself into it._   
_

__“Honey, I’m home!” he yells out from the hallway as he toes off his shoes, letting all bags drop where he's standing. The mess can wait until tomorrow, Johnny can't._ _

__“Took you long enough!” a yell of the same volume comes from the kitchen and Johnny finds himself breaking out into a smile, finally arriving at the moment he spent days longing for._ _

__When he steps into the kitchen it's to a smiling Donghyuck leaning against one of their kitchen counters, crossed arms holding onto a spatula, looking so fucking cute with his messed up hair and a green little apron tied around a loose tee and basketball shorts. It's a picture so domestic Johnny melts all at once and gives in. “Sorry love,” he sighs, stepping across the room to wrap his arms around the younger. Donghyuck gives in easily, draping his own arms around Johnny's neck once he's set the spatula down. This evening marks a week of Johnny being gone for a championship series; he was supposed to be home earlier but his coach decided to squeeze in an additional practice just to make Johnny suffer a bit longer. “We decided to trade in tomorrow's practice for today.”_ _

__“Does that mean you're free tomorrow?” Donghyuck asks, eyes wide and hopeful. Johnny pecks his nose._ _

__“Yup.”_ _

__Instead of answering, Donghyuck pulls him close for a hug. “You must be tired,” he sighs. Johnny knows the boy worries about him, they have shared enough late night face-times over the week for Donghyuck to have noticed his dark circles even over the shitty hotel wi-fi. He doesn't look much better now, having gone straight from the airport to practice, only to gather all the remaining energy in his body for vigorous training routine. Donghyuck understands though; neither of them achieved greatness through resting. Johnny pulls back a little to meet Hyuck's eyes._ _

__“I missed you,” he repeats himself for the hundredth time this week._ _

__“Missed you too,” Donghyuck smiles back at him, voice quiet and overflowing with honey. He sinks his fingers into Johnny's tied up hair, fiddling with the hair tie until it comes off and Hyuck's able to run his fingers through the still-damp locks. “Almost pounced on you in the hallway with Ten standing there.”_ _

__Johnny laughs, so fucking endeared and so glad to be home. Keeping their relationship secret has been a rollercoaster ever since the beginning, but times spent apart always prove to be the hardest. They're hard with all the longing and missing, hard when Johnny sees his fellow competitors accompanied by their significant others to events, hard when the airport arrivals are filled with welcome back signs just for Johnny to pass them by on his way to his empty car. It's hard when he wins and has no one's gaze to catch, harder when he loses and all he gets most nights are phone calls. But despite it all, they make it work, having agreed they'd rather be known for their achievements rather than their relationship. It's easier some days and harder on others but then they come back home to each other and it can all be left at the door. Here, none of it matters._ _

__“I don't think poor Ten could have handled it.”_ _

__Donghyuck pats his cheek and smiles, detangling himself from Johnny's arms. “Dinner's ready,” he practically sings, turning his attention to the stove. “Wash your hands and sit down.”_ _

__and Johnny complies.__

__✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*_ _

_  
_On Thursday afternoon, it’s just the two of them on the rink. Donghyuck has the day off from practice and he’s come to pick Johnny up from his when the older one pulls him on the ice. It’s rare that they get to play around like this. Donghyuck looks so at home here, gliding around in gray sweats and his favorite black skates that look like they’ve gone through war but he still insists on keeping. _“These are all signs of love,”_ Donghyuck always stands firm while running his finger over the scratches. Johnny just thinks it means they’ll fall apart any moment now. _   
_

__It was only a couple of months ago when Johnny had finally coerced Donghyuck into trying on figure skates for the first time, though “bribed” might be a better word considering how much time he had to spend on his knees for Hyuck to finally agree. Donghyuck had been convinced that figure skates were too stiff and way too tight on his feet to feel comfortable, nothing like his favorite pair of hockey skates, but Johnny–fighting a losing battle for the sake of reason–insisted that he couldn't pass judgement before having actually tried skating with them. Looking back at it, Johnny should have known trying to change Hyuck’s mind would be nearly impossible. After a few hours of constant moaning from Donghyuck about how he keeps breaking when he doesn't mean to and how the sides of the skates keep digging into his ankles, Johnny gave up on trying to prove himself right. Dating somebody as stubborn as Donghyuck comes at a price._ _

__Now Johnny watches Hyuck speed off, skates cutting into ice and throwing back little sprinkles of white. He thinks it’s unfair how the younger boy gets to see so many of Johnny’s practices when he only ever catches the last few minutes of Hyuck on ice if he’s lucky to get to the rink a couple of minutes early. Sure, Johnny's been regularly going to their games and has been able to see Donghyuck both soaring high on goals and suffering through losses, but this is different. This isn’t the competitive, belligerent Donghyuck that hunts the puck with a stone cold game face. This isn’t the killer whales’ promising young number 66. This is just Donghyuck—hardworking, passionate and so, so caring. This is the Donghyuck who’s put blood, sweat and tears into getting better at this, who’s ready to sacrifice so much for his ambitions and who criticizes himself even amidst mountains of praise. This is the Donghyuck Johnny fell in love with._ _

__Hyuck’s out of his line of sight for a second when weight crashes into his back, familiar arms wrapping around Johnny's waist. There’s a moment of wobbling but Hyuck steadies them right after. “Gotchu,” he murmurs into Johnny's back, squeezing him close while his cheek is rubbing against fabric._ _

__“You’ve always got me,” he smiles, melting into Donghyuck’s arms. They stay like that for a minute or so, just enjoying each other's presence. “Thanks for doing this with me.”_ _

__Donghyuck lets go to slide around Johnny, hands immediately finding their place back on his waist. It's painfully familiar yet alarmingly foreign when felt in public–well, as public as an ice rink with just the two of them can be, but the possibility of somebody walking in on them still looms in the air, tucked away somewhere behind their abandoned belongings scattered on the bleachers and Johnny's spotify playlist still going from the speakers as an extension of his finished practice. Apart from their home, any public displays of affection are limited to a few spaces–dinner at Johnny's mom's, the small New Year's party hosted by Donghyuck's best friend, in the company of Johnny's coach–so it's exciting every time they get to live through some semblance of normalcy. Like play pretend._ _

__“Anything for you,” Donghyuck smiles and pulls Johnny lower, _closer_ and parts his lips. Getting lost in the moment comes almost naturally, Johnny feels like there's an eternity between the rosiness of Hyuck's cupid bow, to the mole that's perched pretty on his cheekbone, to the little sparkle in his eyes. He recognises it as mischief a moment too late. “Last one to our stuff makes dinner!” Johnny stretches his arm to pull him back but Donghyuck's way out of his reach already.__

__✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*_ _

_  
_Mornings where either of them get to sleep in are few and far in between, so it seems almost inhumane to take them away from each other, no matter how willing the suffering party might be. Some days they only get to see each other for a few disjointed hours, others they come home to curl into the others' already sleeping frame. It can get awfully lonely but the good thing about dating another athlete is the understanding of all the sacrifices their profession requires. Sometimes Johnny's willing to forgo a few hours of his sleep so the both of them could crowd in the kitchen and make eggs, knock knees together as they sip their coffee. Donghyuck insists that they'll have plenty of those mornings to share once they retire; then Johnny's resolution melts into the realization that Donghyuck's thinking about their future together and the younger wins by default._   
_

__Donghyuck is used to padding around their apartment quietly, but this morning is a little different. He's not shoving down breakfast and gathering smelly gear in his hockey bag, focusing on not forgetting anything essential and not waking his boyfriend up. The team has the day off from practice to rest before the championships start and Donghyuck has a boring press conference to sit through. He thinks it's silly to expect hockey players to say anything of value since half of them are dumb as rocks, but making a good impression on their fans and opponents is important so he's pushed himself out of the bed early enough to have a slow morning and gather his thoughts. He takes his time, sipping on sweetened coffee and putting together a somewhat healthy breakfast, even cleaning up in the kitchen and leaving a plate out for Johnny when he wakes up._ _

__One hot shower later, he stands in front of their closet, going through his section of dress shirts. The collection's awfully small for an adult in his early twenties, but Donghyuck rarely needs anything else other than sweats and hoodies to get around. There's a midnight blue shirt he bought for a friend's wedding, a crisp white one he still has from his high school graduation, one with a questionable pattern he got from his mom and a satin black one he got as an attempt to look presentable for his and Johnny's anniversary. Fingers running over the soft fabric, a smile blooms on his face as he remembers the excitement of a year spent together and the silliness of faking a restaurant in Johnny's flat. Mark had even volunteered to come in and act like a waiter only to spill a glass of wine on Johnny's carpet, ending the date in a frenzied cleaning session. It was perfect; they've still held on to the dumb thing for sentimental value._ _

__Hyuck sighs and reaches for the blue shirt, deciding that pairing it with jeans will make him look presentable enough and only mildly uncomfortable. He's working on the buttons when the sound of Johnny's voice makes him jump. “Who are you dressing up so nicely for?” It's warm and heavy with sleep and so rough from just waking up that Donghyuck has to swallow, fingers struggling with the stupid fucking button._ _

__“Wouldn't you like to know?” he recovers quickly, smirking as he looks for Johnny in the mirror he's standing in front of. Their eyes meet and Donghyuck regrets it immediately; Johnny's the poster image of domesticity and warmth and risking your career in favor of jumping back in bed with your boyfriend. From the messy locks of blonde hair, to the sleepy smile that lazily stretches across his face, down to the exposed planes of muscle and the delicious bicep that's wrapped tightly around the pillow that seems to have replaced Donghyuck, all of it works like magnets. He reminds himself of the upcoming championships, all the hard practices, the losses, everything that he uses as fuel to drive himself forward, as he climbs in bed and over Johnny, steadying himself on all fours. “Morning sleeping beauty.”_ _

__Johnny reaches a hand up and cups his face, thumb brushing over a soft cheek. “I would,” he replies belatedly, and Donghyuck finds it hard to read his tone, “like to know, that is. Got anyone to impress?”_ _

__Humming, Donghyuck licks his lips. “Yeah, actually.” His eyes trail away to a corner of a room as he does his best to not break out in a smile and drags out the pause as long as possible. “There's this one figure skater I'd die to get my hands on.” He looks back and Johnny, remembers when it used to be like that, when admiring from afar was all Donghyuck knew. It took one accidental run in at a bar of some hotel they were staying for an award show for them to hook up, then start texting, then get along, then figure out how to fit into each other's lives. It wasn't easy at the start, trying to mix getting to know each other with sneaking around and the demanding schedules and post-work exhaustion. Hell, it still isn't, but they both know it's worth it now._ _

__“Oh I'm sure he'll just eat you up like this,” Johnny purrs back and pulls Donghyuck down on top of him._ _

__“You'll wrinkle my shirt!” It's a weak protest that dies in the air as Johnny pulls closer and Hyuck shuts up finally, eager for what's to come._ _

__“You're a hockey player, it's fitting.” All he does is place a smooch on Hyuck's forehead and pats him on the butt. “Off you go, you shouldn't be late.”_ _

__A little disappointed at Johnny's sudden change of tone, Donghyuck plops down further and rests his head on Johnny's chest. “Don' wanna go,” he mumbles, pressing all his weight onto the bed and onto Johnny._ _

__“Too bad.” Johnny's hand ruffles his hair and it just makes him cling to the sheets more. “Go and make me proud, Hyuckie.”_ _

__That's all the encouragement he needs, really.__

__✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*_ _

_  
_The high of a win is hard to come down from–not that Donghyuck particularly wants to. After going through several post-game interviews, signing a few dozen jerseys and yelling with his team members in the locker room, he still hurries forward with a kick in his step and wicked smile on his face. The arena’s mostly empty now—Donghyuck took his sweet time in the showers, spent at least 15 minutes on the phone with his mom, even faked forgetting his wallet and having to go back to the lockers just to get Ten off his back and make sure the coast would be clear. So he lets himself be careless._   
_

__Careless in the way he throws open the doors clearly marked “staff only”, carless in the way he calls Johnny’s name and careless in the way he runs to jump in his arms, bags dropping in the middle of the parking lot._ _

__Johnny’s laughter feels warm against his neck and Donghyuck squeezes closer, legs wrapping around Johnny’s waist while his hands clutch his shoulders. “You were amazing out there,” Johnny says and the smile in his voice is clear as day. Donghyuck knows that Johnny’s looking at him in his own special way that's telling of how proud of he is of the younger and always leaves Hyuck weak in the knees. “Congrats baby.” And everything else goes without saying._ _

__(Though it will be said, later that same night, against Donghyuck's thighs and neck and bitten so deep into his skin he'll remember it for days.)_ _

__Donghyuck pulls back with a giggle, just enough to see that sparkle in Johnny's eyes and confirm that nothing's changed, that no matter how many hours or days they've spent apart they're still in this fucking thing together. Johnny catches his lips in a short kiss and it's another affirmation Donghyuck feels his heart jump at. He needs to say something else before he starts being too mushy for a parking lot._ _

__“Did you see when I-”_ _

__The sound of a car horn cuts him off and both of them jump; for a moment Donghyuck fears he'll end up on the pavement but Johnny's hands are there again, keeping him safe. Their eyes go to the source of the sound and _fuck_. _ _

__It's Ten, leaning out of the window of his car in all his glory, a shit-eating grin splitting his face in half. Donghyuck doesn't even notice the whimper that comes out of his throat as he puts two and two together. There's no question of what Ten's seen or how this looks like, even if Donghyuck manages to fool himself into thinking they look innocent–the wickedness in Ten's eyes says all he needs to know. Overwhelmed and not particularly willing to deal with the situation, he buries his face in Johnny's neck and thinks of ways to either get rid of Ten or move out of the country. “Good game, Ten,” Johnny yells loud enough for the sound to travel across the lot to Ten and Donghyuck whacks his chest. So much for keeping this a secret._ _

__“Have a good night, love birds!” Ten shouts back and Donghyuck hears the engine of his car roar as he speeds off._ _

__Johnny nudges Donghyuck, laughing with so much ease it leaves Donghyuck stumped._ _

__“Let's go home before somebody else finds us.”__

__✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*_ _

_  
_**From: Ten**  
You lucky fucker 🙄  
How long has this been going on for_   
_

__**To: Ten**  
Um….almost 2 years? officially at least _ _

__**From: Ten**  
Icb you!!!!!  
HID it from me??? for this long!!!  
I need all the details in return for my silence_ _

__**To: Ten**  
I hate you_ _

____**From Ten:**  
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️  
Give Johnny a kiss from me 😘 

**Author's Note:**

> Alternative titles: Johnhyuck hugging in different locations. 
> 
> Merry Christmas, Johnhyuckists! <3 Come say hi on [twt](https://twitter.com/hyuckflow3r) :3


End file.
